Biochemistry: Depleting phosphorus starvation
Nature Communications
February 27, 2013
A new lipid molecule which plays an essential role in protecting crops, including rice, against phosphorus depletion is reported in Nature Communications this week. Phosphorus is an indispensable nutrient for plants, but its availability is often limited. This finding may therefore prove useful for breeding plants with increased yield in harsh, phosphorus-starved environments.
Plants have developed several ways to adapt to phosphorus-limited environments some of which involve changing the composition of the chloroplast membrane lipids thus allowing for enhanced phosphorus mobilization. This process is known as lipid remodelling. Kazuki Saito and colleagues apply metabolomic analysis to investigate lipid remodelling in detail and identify a new key lipid molecule, GlcADG, that protects plants against phosphorus depletion. The authors suggest that GlcADG is not essential for maintaining phosphorus levels but instead it likely contributes to creating the best cell condition possible for the proper functioning of organelles in unfavourable, phosphorus limited environments.
doi: 10.1038/ncomms2512
Research highlights
-
Aug 12
Ageing: Mutations in the ageing human heart identifiedNature Aging
-
Aug 12
Palaeontology: T. rex and relatives traded big eyes for bigger bitesCommunications Biology
-
Aug 10
Epidemiology: Estimating the risk of SARS-related coronaviruses from bats in Southeast AsiaNature Communications
-
Aug 5
Microbiology: Single switch makes Escherichia coli beneficial insect partnerNature Microbiology
-
Aug 5
Conservation: More than half of unassessable species may be at risk of extinctionCommunications Biology
-
Aug 4
Physiology: Restoring cellular functions in pigs after deathNature